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WORKING AT HOME WITH BABIES: UTOPIA OR A REAL POSSIBILITY?

If you are a mother or father of a baby, you may have considered that you want to spend more time at home to watch her/him grow and give her/him fuller attention. However, once both paternity and maternity leave end, it is necessary to go back to the usual schedule and it is difficult to pick up the rhythm again, concentrate, and of course, the longing arises.

This is not always the case, there are those who are looking forward to the time to return to work, because without underestimating the baby, the fact of having established routines allows to create a feeling of having everything under control, with the addition of the new member to the family, yes. And to long for is simply to know that in a few hours they will meet again with their baby.

But if you are in the situation of wanting to take care of your baby, the dilemma arises: could I work from home? The trend that is already seen and facing the next few years is that yes, there are employments that can be exercised from anywhere, and companies, if they want to be up to date, they will have to be permissive in this regard. But there are others that do not, in which it is evident that we must be present in a specific place (like any work facing the public or production in factories, to put a couple of examples).

In any case, it is necessary to establish what is the priority in each family nucleus and the real possibilities of changing jobs or adapting a job in another place, in another environment, such as home.

But if you decide to spend more time with your baby, you have to do practically perfect planning to: a) continue being productive for your company, if you are salaried, reaching a consensus (hours a day, days a week) , etc.) or b) if you are self-employed, that you continue to make your effort profitable.

I thought it would be easier ...

Well, you've decided to stay at work at home; like all change, it is not easy to adapt and you have to take into account many things. But, if it is what you really want, is not an ideal situation? Here are some tips that may be useful:

. You must be flexible in your timetables (especially if you do not have someone to help you with some basic tasks such as changing baby's diapers or taking care of her/him when she/he cries), and take advantage of those tasks that require more concentration when the baby is sleeping. And adapt to situations that in your workplace, before the change, surely did not occur.

. You may need someone to help you with the baby; It is not about being all day attending your son / daughter, because you must do your job. The funny thing is that you can save yourself early mornings (as long as the baby lets you sleep, of course), haste and more or less long trips: that is the time you must spend with your baby, to interact with him / her: You both will feel grateful. You can also take advantage of playing with him / her in the breaks, always necessary, that you do. But unless your baby is very calm, you will need someone if you want to do your job with a minimum of guarantees (it is not necessary hiring a person for the whole day, it can be hours, not every day, etc.)

. If you decide for this option, the person who takes care of the baby must respect the schedules that you have marked. You must also do your part: if you hear that the baby cries, keep working, because there is someone doing everything possible to calm him/her down.

. To maintain your concentration, try to have a single place of work, be it the studio or a corner in a room that you can adapt and where you feel comfortable. And that is always the same, where you can leave all the papers, computer, etc. without having to replace them the next day. Also consider where you will work best in summer or during the hot months; and the same for the cold.

Does your work allow you to perform the tasks that you have entrusted from home?